Parish Pump Lewes – January 25, 2013

Published:14:46Friday 25 January 2013

barcombe

AGM: Barcombe Cricket Club AGM, Tuesday February 26, 8pm at The Royal Oak. For further details please contact Kate 01273 400667.

CLUBS AND SOCIETIES: Saturday, 2nd February from 10 to noon; come and find out about the clubs and societies in the village. Taking part and hoping for new members are: Playgroup, the Book Club, Football Club, Badminton Club, Footpaths Society, Pilates, Care Afternoon, Men’s Club, NrG, The Barcombe Players, The Art Club, The Garden Club, Women’s Institute, Jess Lloyd and Universal Dance, Parent and Toddler Group, the Village Hall Committee, the Cricket Club, Stoolball, the Tennis Club and Tai Chi.

THANKS to Murco Garage, at Chailey crossroads, who nominated Chailey Heritage Foundation to benefit from the Making a Difference Locally scheme and raised nearly £400. Chailey Heritage are very grateful to Mr Sundaram and his customers for their support.

CHURCH SERVICES: St Peter’s Church services on Sunday are Book of Common Prayer Holy Communion at 8am and Parish Communion at 10am. Transport can be arranged by calling Peter Martin on 01825 722680 or Teresa Wenban on 01825722586. In addition The Revd John Maskell will be in church on Saturday from 8.30am to 9.30am. Everyone is invited to come along and join in with prayers for the people, the church and its way forward. You are also invited to photograph the church as each month throughout 2013 it is requested that photographs depicting the church, inside or out, are sent by email to the parish office at stpeterschurch12@hotmail.co.uk. The best photograph each month will be used in the church calendar for 2014. The closing date for photographs of the church taken this month is February 5 and the photographs will be judged by the Parochial Church Council. Free Church services on Sunday are with Giles Woodcraft at 10.30am and Phillip Wells at 6.15pm. Tea, coffee and biscuits will be served after the service.

SCALEXTRIC Racing afternoon is at the Horns Lodge on Sunday from 2pm to 6pm. Please do go along and support this event (a car will be provided) as everyone is welcome to take part. There will be two categories, children and adults, with prizes being given for the Bonfire Society for the fastest times in each category.

PISTON HEADS Breakfast Meet is at the Five Bells on Sunday from 10am to midday and anything with an engine is most welcome. Great hot dogs and bacon rolls. For more information call Robin on 0182572 2259.

CHARITY QUIZ is at the Horns Lodge Inn, on Tuesday at 8pm. Teams of up to seven, £2 per person entry. For more information call Linda on 01273 400422.

THE YOUTH GROUP meet at the village hall tonight, Friday, from 7.30pm to 9pm and it will be a games evening with tug of war rope, giant jenga, snakes and ladders and Kerplunk. There will also be a Surprise Fishing game. In addition there will be a range of other activities available throughout the evening such as table tennis, pool, air hockey, football table, tuck shop and plenty more. All young people aged 10 to 16 years who live in or around the Chailey area are always welcome. To find out more about the group call Gemma Kybert on 07843410895.

NEARLY NEW SALE of children’s and females’ clothes will be at the village hall on Saturday February 23 from 11am to 12.30pm. The sale is being organised by Chailey Youth Group. For more information and to book a table ring Gemma Kybert on 07843410895.

BRIGHTON MARATHON (Sunday April 14) St Peter and St James Hospice have three spaces available to take part in this marathon to raise funds for the hospice. There is a £25 entry fee and £600 minimum sponsorship requirement. If you would like this challenge and to support the Hospice email marie.shipley@stpeter-stjames.org.uk

SOUTHERN AT WAR Weekend is at the Bluebell Railway on May 11 and 12. Anyone wanting to attend the weekend as walk-in re-enactors or to display vehicles or have a stand please contact Louise Duncton from the sales and information team at the railway on 01825 720800.

GARDENS WANTED: If you or anyone you know would be willing to open your garden to the public St Peter and St James Hospice would like to hear from you. They are looking for a variety of gardens, from small patio gardens to large landscaped ones. Garden trails are also very welcome if you are able to arrange for a group of gardens to open on the same day. To discuss arrangements for opening your garden call Carol in the Fundraising department on 01444 471598 or email carol.hughes@stpeter-stjames.org.uk.

cooksbridge, offham & ham

WANTED: The Countryside Alliance (CA) is on the lookout for aspiring journalists with a passion for the great outdoors. It’s launched a Young Countryside Writer competition, open to 12 to 18 year olds, who must submit 300 words on What the British Countryside Means to You. The winner, who will be chosen by a panel including CA chief executive Barney White-Spunner and Alastair Balmain, editor of the Shooting Times, will be given the chance to write for its membership magazine in 2013. Entries should be sent to news@countryside-alliance.org by April 2. For more information visit www.countryside-alliance.org Emma Hughes.

RURAL CRIME: A report I read recently with a focus on farm security has some interesting points regarding the increase in farm thefts: Despite a significant drop in tractor thefts, the annual cost of rural crime continues to clime reaching £53m in 2011. Around 400 police officers, insurers and farmers gathered at the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) second rural crime conference in Kettering last month to hear what is being done to combat it.

KEY POINTS: Rural crime continues to increase. Now estimated to cost the industry £53m per year. Reduction in tractor thefts is a success story. Livestock and metal theft is on the increase. Collaboration between industry, police, insurers and other agencies is essential. Technology offers solutions, but criminals are fighting back with hi-tech solutions of their own. DNA can offer assistance in livestock theft cases. ASBOs can help rural communities fight back against persistent low level crime and intimidation by criminals. Social media provides a useful interface between police and rural communities. In our parish we are fairly lucky as we do have a Farmwatch scheme and we all keep in touch with one another to pass on information. It does not mean to say that anyone should be complacent over the security of their property.

TURKEY DINNER: It was good to read also how injured British soldiers were able to tuck in to a farm-fresh turkey dinner for Christmas thanks to generous donations from British producers up and down the country. The UK Turkeys website www/ukturkeys.co.uk has teamed up with Connect Packaging and the Ministry of Defence to launch Turkeys for Troops.

SCARE Birds Not Neighbours, is another interesting report: Bird scarers and deterrents are an essential tool to protect many crops from damage. However if used thoughtlessly they can seriously disturb the public and that could fuel the pressure for strict legal controls or a ban on their use. The NFU is reminding members that just a few inconsiderate actions could threaten the ability of all growers to protect their crops in future. It’s worth noting much of the traffic to the story came from organised anti-gas gun action groups.

MOONS: I have been reading a book called Red Sky At Night which has all the names of the moons. Having watched the moon appear last night, which looked quite eerie as it peeped out from cloud, I read that the January one is called Wolf Moon. I did not hear any wolves howling but around midnight I was woken by the ghastly sound of a fox howling beneath my window.

falmer

LAST SATURDAY was a red letter day for St Laurence Church. Colin Lawlor was licensed as our new priest-in-charge by Archdeacon Douglas McKittrick. Colin has been looking after us ever since the retirement of Andrew Robinson but now he is officially our new priest. The service was attended by a large number of clergy, including the Archdeacon and the Rural Dean and the ceremony started with a procession of clergy followed by the churchwardens with their ceremonial wands preceding the Archdeacon and Colin. There then followed the priest’s vows and the licensing. After the service the large congregation (including the Mayor of Brighton) was invited to the village hall and treated to a wonderful warming lunch of hot home-made soup with delicious fresh bread and freshly made fruit salad. Many thanks to Jill Burt for organising and cooking this with sterling help from Rosemarie.

SNOW: The only sad element of the day was that the thick snow prevented some of the guests from coming. Others were happier about the weather. At the last count we have two cheery looking snowmen by the pond and I have seen so many people with toboggans. I am not sure it was the ideal snow for tobogganing (too powdery) but I’m sure people managed to have fun anyway. We went for a walk up Ridge Road and everything looks beautiful up there. Even the recently built residences at the north-eastern end of Sussex University campus, which are very ordinary looking normally, acquired the look of a Japanese print with their turned-up roofs covered in snow. It is also very easy to see where the new saplings have been planted on the north east facing slope. You can see thousands of little sticks outlined against the white.

DIARY DATES: The first concert of the 2013 season will be Falmer Court Musicians on February 2 at 5.30pm. We are really lucky to have a group of musicians living right here in the village and for the first time they will be performing at St Laurence. The exciting programme features performances from the ever inventive Le Juki group (have a listen at www.lejuki.com) plus solo and ensemble pieces by Chopin, Tavener and the performers’ original compositions. I am really looking forward to this. This is the first of two February concerts, the second, on February 16, is a Valentines-themed feast of arias and duets from 17th to 19th century with Sue Mileham (soprano), Philip Eve (tenor) and Nicola Grunberg (piano).

PARENTING COURSE: This course of five evening sessions is designed to to help you give your child the best possible start in life. You won’t leave with a diploma in perfect parenting, but you will hopefully gain confidence and learn some practical strategies for coping with the difficulties of raising children. The first session starts at 6.45pm on Wednesday February 6 at the King’s Church building, Brooks Road (opposite Homebase). To book your place (no charge) phone 01273 486182 or email office@kingschurchlewes.org.

FOOTPATHS GROUP: After a bus ride from Lewes, the group of 16 walkers gathered next to Brighton’s Big Wheel before setting off along the promenade towards the marina, two weeks ago. There were lots of other people out and about and enjoying the dry weather with a hint of sunshine. There were some cyclists, some families and many people jogging, there were some on skateboards and others on inline skates. At the marina we walked next to the harbour, admiring all the money tied up along the side of the pontoons. At the eastern end are the fishing boats which add to the odoriferous ambiance for the local residents. Walking along the Undercliffe path, we were sheltered from the cold north wind by the towering chalk cliffs. The sea was calm and the sun was even more in evidence, making for a very pleasant walk which we enjoyed with locals who were managing to survive without the boots, rucksacks, waterproofs and all the other trappings attached to serious walkers like us. At Rottingdean the majority of walkers took the bus home but a smaller group carried on across the Downs back to Lewes. A steady climb took us to the top overlooking the Ouse valley above Swanborough; the view of Lewes, Caburn and across to Firle is as good as any to be had in this part of the world. The path in to Lewes was a little muddy and wet but we all emerged unscathed and dispersed to our homes after a thoroughly enjoyable walk led by Hilda and Graham. The next walk is on Sunday when we will be walking on the Ashdown Forest but will meet at the usual place, top North Street car park at 9.30am.

malling

SOUTH MALLING SCHOOL: The first snowfall of the year was enthusiastically greeted by the children last Friday and they all enjoyed a fun breaktime building snowmen and playing in the snow. Luckily staff were able to keep the school open all day, thanks to the commitment of staff that live locally, who took on additional classes and supervision duties to cover colleagues who lived further away. As the weather began to deteriorate parents were given the option to fetch their children before the end of the school day. The school did not close on Monday either. Headteacher, Mrs O’Donoghue, said that they will always endeavour to keep the school open in adverse weather conditions, though they have to make sure that there are enough staff to meet legal obligations and ensure that children are safe and the site can be safely accessed. Any information about school closures will be posted on the school’s website: www.southmalling.com. Parents/carers are advised to check the website rather than phone the school if they are concerned. On Tuesday, the first meeting of the Parents’ Forum for this year took place. It was great to see so many parents and hear their views on all things school related. Today (Friday) our school football team will be playing in Brighton at the Sussex championships. They had a very well deserved win in the Lewes tournament and now go on to face the winners of the other districts in Sussex in what promises to be an exciting championship. Good luck to the South Malling Team.

SOUTH MALLING CHURCH: After the Sunday service last week, many members of the congregation stayed behind to discuss proposals that, together with St John sub Castro, they unite with Southover Church. This follows the Vicar’s announcement that he would be moving to a new post after Easter. A number of people spoke about the need to have a single minister identifiable as the lead priest for South Malling, and wondered how that would work. There were questions about the church’s ministry to the school and how that would work and about current service patterns. There was a concern the congregation had not been fully involved in discussions so far and no decisions would be made without a proper process. The churchwardens reassured members that proposals are currently tentative and they are being fully discussed by the PCC, who are meeting on Thursday to consider the issues and concerns now being raised. This is the beginning of a careful consultation process which will involve all members. On the whole, the proposals were welcomed, sometimes cautiously, though towards the end of the meeting a number of members spoke very positively, describing them as exciting, inspired and a great opportunity for churches to work together to benefit the whole community. In particular, there was a request that what has started as a tentative discussion needed to be worked into a serious way forward quite quickly. South Malling doesn’t want an uncertain gap when its Vicar leaves, if it can be avoided.

mobile library

THE LIBRARY will be visiting the following areas this week. Tuesday: Berwick village hall noon to 12.30pm; opposite Lamb Inn, Ripe 2.00pm to 2.25pm; Laughton village school 2.45pm to 3.30pm.

nevill

NEVILL SHARES: We are having our next community event at St Mary’s Hall, Highdown Road from 12.30pm to 3.30pm on Sunday. There will be home made soup and bread for lunch, and also cards, board games, and jigsaws available to play with. An opportunity to meet more people in your neighbourhood. All ages welcome. We look forward to more ideas for events, and skills and resources sharing on the day. For more information, please contact nevill-shares@googlegroups.com

CHRIST CHURCH: Worship on Sunday will be led by our minister, Rev John Gordon at 10.30am. There will be no Sunday Club on this morning as the service will be designed to cater for all ages. After the service we will have our church meeting which will be followed by a church lunch. At 3pm there will be a Thanksgiving Service to celebrate the work of Homelink in Lewes. This service has been organised by Lewes District Churches. On Wednesday at 7.30pm the ThinkTank will be meeting when the speaker will be Alex Kirby. Alex will be speaking on Journalists under pressure. The Tots group next Friday will be having a cake sale to raise money for the Trevor Mann Baby Unit and we are asking all those who come along to bring some cakes to sell and also to buy some cakes. Last April one of the mums who comes to Tots gave birth to a little girl who was born with a rare and life threatening condition. The little girl was successfully treated at the Unit. We hope to be able to send a good donation to this charity.

ST JOHN SUB CASTRO: On Sunday at 10am, before our 11am service, we will be holding a meeting with all those interested in St John’s future to hear and to discuss our new plans. These promise to be exciting times and to be welcomed by our parishioners. Sunday service will be a Holy Communion at 11am led by Rev Glen Hocking (a chaplain at Lewes Prison) to be followed as usual by refreshments and a good natter. That afternoon at 3pm at Christchurch, Prince Edwards Road, there will be a thanksgiving service; With God all things are possible, where we will be thanking Him for his loving care, concern and guidance. And a note of thanks for those who signed the massive Christmas card made by the children of Pells School and displayed in church, raising £64.47 for Home Link who continue to help people into housing. And now for the women of our parish, Southover are inviting you to a women’s hot supper at Spring Farm for a good meal and to meet new people. Tickets, £10, include a glass of wine or soft drink and a choice of feast: chicken casserole, beef lasagne, or a veggie option. It sounds good.

piddinghoe

FILM NIGHT at Piddinghoe Village Hall today, Friday, 7pm for 7.30pm. The Producers, 1978 comedy. Admission £3 including tea or coffee and biscuits. Wine £2 a glass.

plumpton

SLOW DOWN: The sewer maintenance work along Station Road is now due to start, so watch out for those dreaded temporary traffic lights and be prepared for delays if travelling by car. We are told that they will be minor. The work will start by the entrance to the railway station and, over the next nine weeks or so, will steadily proceed northwards as far as Wells Close. Hopefully it will lead to the alleviation of at least some of the problems that are experienced. Where possible, lights etc, will be stowed away at weekends to allow traffic to flow freely.

PLUMPTON RACES: Weather permitting there will be racing at Plumpton again on Monday with the first race getting off at 1.10pm. The staff at the course certainly make proper use of the facilities at their disposal to ensure cancellation is now a rare event. Gone are the bad old days.

BIRDWATCHING: Plumpton Wildlife and Habitat Group is keen for locals to join in The Big Garden Birdwatch being organised this weekend by RSPB. You are asked to spend one hour watching birds in the garden (you can do this through the window whilst seated in a warm room) and report to RSPB the maximum number of each of the species seen during the session. It all helps record the population trends of the various species and results are usually published by April. More information is available at www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch. Similar records are kept locally and those same results can be sent to hutson.t@btinternet.com. If you want to know more, I am sure Tony Hutson will be pleased to chat to you on 01273 890341. His knowledge is not restricted to bats. If you are generally interested in wildlife the group could well be of interest to you.

WEATHER HAZARDS: We certainly got our fair share of snow recently and, true to form, the country came to a virtual standstill. However, credit must be given where it is due and Lewes District Council certainly did a good job in keeping the road through Plumpton clear.

MEDICAL APPOINTMENT? A reminder that Plumpton Voluntary Driving Scheme operates a service to get local residents to and from appointments with the doctor, dentist, hospital, pharmacy and the like at modest cost. It is manned by local volunteers and has proved invaluable to enable residents to get about as public transport to such venues is very sadly lacking and often non existent. A return trip to Haywards Heath or Ditchling, for instance, costs just £4.50 and it is door to door service. The service must be booked in advance, but this is easily done by ringing 07855 213947. If no-one is available to take your call, do leave your name and telephone number on the answering service and your call will be returned. Volunteers cannot guarantee to be hanging on the end of the phone 24/7 so do leave a message, however much you dislike voicemail, or answering machines or whatever they are called. This service has proved highly successful and your drivers will be friendly, local people with a great community spirit. The service extends to such far away places as Brighton, East Grinstead and Crowborough. Our neighbours in East Chiltington and Streat are welcome to take advantage of the service and they will not have to produce passports or entry visas to do so.

LIGHTS OUT: A number of people have commented on the seemingly increasing number of motor vehicles that have faulty lights when being driven in darkness or poor lighting conditions. This is against the law but law enforcement is often neglected because of lack of manpower, we are told, or because of other priorities. Defective bulbs and badly focused headlights are positive hazards and drivers should carry out very regular checks to ensure all is in order. It is not good enough to rely on the annual MOT inspection and bulbs can blow on fairly new vehicles that do not require such inspections. We have so many laws in place, but it is the enforcement that is lacking and permits them to be broken. We need to have sufficient resources to allow proper and fair policing, as a ‘word in the ear’ is often all that is needed, except for persistent offenders. More laws and fewer resources to enforce them is not a good recipe. That’s something for our new Police Commissioner to think about and come up with a solution. I am not advocating blitzes, just consistent and fair, even handed enforcement.

ringmer

HISTORY STUDY GROUP: At its meeting tonight, Friday, at 7.45pm in the village hall Bob Cairns’ talk will be based on his new book Lewes through Time which is published by Amberley Publishing. It compares stunning modern photographs of Lewes with old images taken by the town’s Victorian and Edwardian photographers, demonstrating in some cases how much has changed, and in others how little. There are almost 200 photographs in the book including many which have not been seen before. They include a remarkable sequence of views down Malling Hill that a few readers may remember from the days before the Phoenix Causeway and the Cuilfail tunnel. In those days the two-way A27 turned sharp left as it ran from South Street into Cliffe High Street, up School Hill. through the Bottleneck and out of the town at the Prison.

COFFEE MORNING in the Church Room tomorrow, Saturday, commencing at 10am. Please support this event which is being held to raise funds for The Leprosy Mission which works to eradicate leprosy.

JUMBLE SALE in the village hall tomorrow, Saturday, at 2pm, organised by Nevill Juvenile Bonfire Society. If you wish to donate jumble for this sale please take it to the village hall on Saturday morning as near to noon as possible.

FOOTBALL CLUB: Unfortunately there were no games last weekend due to the snow but the club is hoping for better luck this Saturday when the first team are at home to Horsham YMCA in an SCFL Div 1 fixture. Kick off at the Caburn is 3pm as usual. The second team are in action in the reserve section premier league away to Mile Oak Reserves also with a 3pm kick off. The Veterans are still trying to get their final league fixture played away to Uckfield and they need to win this match in order to progress to the knock out stages of the Fred Pretty Cup competition. Hopefully the weather will be kind and they can get the game played this Sunday morning at the Victoria Rec in Uckfield.

PLANNING RINGMER’S FUTURE: There will be a parish meeting at 7.30pm on Wednesday, in Ringmer Village Hall (Old Hall) to discuss the local impact of the recently published Lewes District Core Strategy, which proposes building 220 houses in Ringmer. The parish council needs to know your views before it responds to this consultation, and also considers its implication for Ringmer’s Neighbourhood Plan. The issues are explained in more detail in the parish council newsletter recently delivered to all residents. This is your opportunity to have your say. If you care about Ringmer’s future, please attend.

BRIDGE CLUB: The result of the duplicate pairs played on January 16 was: 1, Pam Brook and Joan Evett; 2, Valerie and Peter King; 3, Deirdre Booth and Simon Webster. The next meeting of the club will be in the St Mary’s Room of the village hall at 7.30pm on Wednesday.

SILVER SURFER CLASS: The next Class will be at Ringmer Community College & Sixth Form on Saturday, February 2 between 10am and noon. If you are over 50 years old and are interested in learning about using a computer or just need help with anything, the college runs these informal sessions where a young person works alongside you to improve and develop your skills at your own pace. For further information or to book a place please contact Ruth Whitlock, Learning Resource Centre Manager on 01273 812220 ext 253 during school hours. There is no charge for the classes and refreshments will be served during the break.

FAMILY QUIZ Evening organised by Ringmer Primary School Association on Saturday, February 2, from 6.15pm to 8.15pm. Do please try to get along and support your local school at this popular event. Bob Cairns has once again agreed to be the quiz master setting questions for every age group. Teams of up to six must include one adult and one child (16 years or under). Please either contact the school on 812463 or Angela on 813860 for information or tickets. Tickets are priced: Family ticket £18, adult £5 and child £2.50. All ticket prices to include food. Proceeds are this time going towards re-developing and enhancing the outside area of the school.

TABLE TENNIS: If you are interested in playing table tennis please go along to a meeting at 2pm on Wednesday, February 13, at the Scout HQ. This is to explore the possibility of forming a club for Ringmer residents. For further information please contact Paul Hathway on 813742.

VACANCIES: Ringmer Parish Council currently has two vacancies it is keen to fill as soon as possible. If you are interested in community life and would like to undertake an active role in local decision making why not consider becoming a Parish Councillor? There are 13 councillors in all, aiming to represent a good cross section of the community. Council meets monthly (except August) on the second Thursday of each month and its planning committee monthly on the fourth Thursday. There are also a couple of other committees, the membership of which is split between councillors, all those meetings are held in the evening. Candidates should apply by February 28. For further details please contact Chris Elphick, clerk, on 01273 813242 or John Kay, the chairman, on 01273 813388.

rodmell & southease

SNOW: As I sit writing PP the snow is falling gently, covering everywhere in its white, beautiful but treacherous mantle. The birds are waiting hopefully for their breakfast at the back door and looking out over our field the seven cock pheasants look like a perfect picture for a Christmas card. Tine, the goat, has a wonderful thick long coat this winter. He must have known what was coming. He is not enthralled at all by this white stuff, especially since I ran out of green stuff for him. At least he has a nice warm stable thick in bedding. The village looks so chocolate box pretty in its covering of snow and photographers are out in abundance, as are ski enthusiasts, snowboarders and tobogganers. Children and adults alike are looking a lot healthier as they are getting outside exercise and smiles and rosy cheeks are a lovely sight to see.

MY NEIGHBOURS, and friend Rob, who is forever on hand to get logs in, fix light bulbs etc are so appreciated by me. I have been asked to their houses to have coffee, lunches and they have done shopping for me and are now saving vegetables for Tine.

OUR PUB: It’s very handy having a good pub just cross the road and if I want for company, whilst Mike is still in hospital, I just pop over there for lunch and get a warm welcome. It was rather like a Swiss ski lodge on Sunday when it was packed with people coming in from the snow to enjoy the open fire and good food.

CLIENTS: I would appreciate anyone who is a client of Mike’s giving me a ring so I can give them an update, as I know nothing about tax and accounting so I cannot sort anything out. It’s a horrible situation to be left in. My number is 01273 476876.

ILLNESS: It doesn’t seem to matter who you talk to at the moment everyone is ill or has been ill and so many people have problems. Let’s spread some love, care and happiness around, just as my neighbours are doing in their care for me. It makes the world a happier place.

PANTO: It’s panto time for the village this weekend so let’s hope all goes well. Rodmell Stage Company presents Jack and the Beanstalk, 8pm today, Friday, 7.30pm tomorrow, Saturday, and 3pm and 7.30pm on Sunday. Tickets cost £6 adults, £3 children and are available from the Abergavenny Arms.One thing about living in a village, there is always something going on and you don’t have to travel far to get to it.

NEWS: A neighbour has kindly just given me the following information: Those people who lived in Rodmell in the 70s and enjoyed the company of Roy and Vivian Ringer in Monks House will be interested to know that Vivian passed away at her home in Malibu, California and that her ashes will be scattered in the garden of Monks House. Roy and Vivian were writers of some note and were widely travelled. They spent a year and a half sabbatical at Monks House. Roy enjoyed village life to the full, helping at lambing time, playing darts in the pub and even trying his hand at cricket. Meanwhile Vivian enjoyed all things rural, and writing in Virginia’s garden room. The happy memories of their parties are still bright after nearly 40 years. It is warming and a privilege to know that Vivian’s ashes have come back to us.

I HEAR from a neighbour head lice are affecting schools in the area again. We used to have what we called the Nit Nurse come to schools regularly in my youth and matrons in posher schools would rub heads raw with carbolic. Not a nice experience. Once your child has them the whole family is at risk.